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LONG ISLAND VINES; Local Wines Score High In Judging

FOR many years, many Long Island producers, for various reasons, kept out of the New York Wine and Food Classic, the annual contest limited to the state's wines. In 2003, they began contributing, and a record 119 wines from 18 producers were offered. This year, the classic was held on Long Island for the first time, and 31 of the 35 local producers entered 184 wines.

''I've been telling them to submit more wines, and they will win more medals,'' said James Trezise, president of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, a trade association in the Finger Lakes, which sponsors the contest.

On Tuesday, local producers won 10 of 29 double-gold medals, which qualified them for the championship round; this 35 percent outcome contrasts with last year's 16 percent. (A wine is automatically awarded a double-gold medal when all judges on a panel award it a single gold.)

In the whites, Peconic Bay Winery's 2001 La Barrique chardonnay ($17) was named best chardonnay. Bedell Cellars' 2003 gewürztraminer ($25), made from grapes from Corey Creek, its sister winery, led in its category.

For the fifth straight year, a riesling was voted New York's best wine. In the first such victory for the Hudson Valley, the award went to the Rivendell Winery for its 2003 Dry Riesling ($13), made with grapes bought from Chateau LaFayette Reneau, in the Finger Lakes.

Paumanok was voted winery of the year on the basis of winning eight medals: two double golds, two single golds, three silvers and one bronze.

Long Island's most expensive wine, the $125 Wölffer 2001 Premier Cru merlot, received a bronze, whose equivalent on a college report card would be a gentleman's C.

In addition to its gold medal for the 2002 Vineyard Selection chardonnay, Lenz, a longtime holdout from the contest, received two silvers, a medal that the wine world finds worthy of respect, for its 1997 Old Vines merlot ($55) and its 2000 cabernet sauvignon ($30).

Multimillion-dollar Raphael, whose wines mostly require time to unfold and patience by consumers, won silver medals for its 2003 Saignée, a rosé ($15); 1997 merlot ($36); and 1999 merlot ($38) and three bronze medals, for its 2003 sauvignon blanc, 2000 merlot and 2000 La Fontana, a red blend.

Taken together, the 2003 and 2004 contests' results suggest that Paumanok is an increasingly powerful presence; that Martha Clara is rising fast toward the apex of quality; that Jamesport merlots and cabernet francs warrant steady attention; that Bedell and Corey Creek gewürztraminers find broad appeal; and that Peconic Bay has a knack for chardonnay, made both in stainless steel and in barrel.

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A version of this review appears in print on August 8, 2004, on Page LI14 of the National edition with the headline: LONG ISLAND VINES; Local Wines Score High In Judging. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe